A Place for My Heart
by Shalan the Magnificent
Summary: Lieutenant Renji Abarai worked his way up the ranks from the hellish 79 district. When he meets a young woman from the 80 district can she heal his broken heart and teach him that the most treasured things in life are in fact the times of struggle? RenOC
1. Getting Away With Nothing

**Title: **A Place for My Heart

**Summary:**Lieutenant Renji Abarai worked his way up the ranks from the hellish 79 district. When he meets a young woman from the 80 district can she heal his broken heart and teach him that the most treasured things in life are in fact the times of struggle? RenOC

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach… that belongs to Kubo Tite… because if I did… Orihime would not exist…

**Shalan's Say:** Uhm… from what I have seen there really hasn't been a REAL fic with just Renji and another character in it… and I really don't like RenRuki… but you all know that… I'm an IchiRuki writer… but uhm… yeah… I'm going to write this… I know it's not RenTat like most people like… but I just can't put her into this story since it's kinda within the series… Uhm… I hope you all like it… if you liked any of my other stories… then I'm sure you'll like this one…

**Chapter:** Getting Away With Nothing

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Renji sighed as he walked along the pathways of the Rukongai. It had been quite a while since he had been out in the outer city and it almost surprised him how many things hadn't changed since he was a small boy. His eyes dimmed slightly as he saw a little kid pulling the same ploy that he had come up with when he was a kid. He smiled lightly as he walked past another set of tables. Several of the people looked at him with disdain and he looked off to the side almost painfully.

He walked on, out past the outskirts of the 79th district towards the water. He placed his hand gently on the hilt of his sword as he walked forward towards the beautifully lit water. The sun was going down, setting on their world for the time being. He closed his eyes. This was the perfect time. The sunset. It was like his life. His eyes opened slightly.

It was like how his life always had been… everything came to an end… just like… the daylight.

'… _you__ are nothing but a monkey reaching into a lake for the moon's reflection…_' his look darkened. Byakuya Kuchiki. The man that had finally come to respect him after so many long years. Rukia… he looked into the water and suddenly saw her there again. He smiled. His best friend through all of the years. They had been driven apart for a long time… and now finally were able to be friends again.

'…_Renji!_' Ichigo's voice interrupted his thoughts again. The man that he had come to respect… the man that seemed to cause so much trouble for them all but always came through in the end. The two had begun their friendship rather shakily but in the end they had become trusted allies.

So many things had happened since the days in the Rukongai… Renji sighed lightly. He and Rukia had become best friends… then they had been torn apart again. He had made a few new friends. He supposed that counted for something. But there was still something missing… a part of him that he knew should exist.

There was his fighting spirit, his power, his strength. But behind all of that was his soul, broken and weary of all the things that plagued it to begin with. Poverty had forced him to become what he was today… but was he happy where he was?

_"__Abarai__ where are you going?"_ Byakuya had asked him earlier that day.

"_I'm going out into the __Rukongai__… I want to revisit some of my old haunts…"_ he had replied and Byakuya had nodded.

Byakuya Kuchiki, his captain and the adopted brother of his best friend. Renji still didn't quite understand the other man yet… and for some reason that had become something of an agreement between the two… not to ask questions just to believe the other man without and explaination.

But that wasn't what bothered him…

Ichigo and Rukia had finally admitted their love for each other… that made him smile… that Rukia had finally found the man she was looking for… that wasn't bothering him either… it was something to do with that… but not the entire thing.

Byakuya's involvement in his best friend's happiness… could be… but it still didn't seem to get at what he believed was missing… but he did have a few choice words for his captain… if he could say them and not get his ass kicked…

_Byakuya… you're an idiot… you seem to think that Rukia is still the little girl she was when you first met her…_ Renji thought. But in a way she was… she still believed that beauty could come from struggles; that pain could create a future… and that anything sacrificed could be obtained again through hard work. The lieutenant looked up with a blink as he heard panting. A spiritual pressure that he hadn't sensed before was moving rather slowly towards him. He opened his eyes. The water before him was blood red, reflecting off the sky.

A figure stumbled towards him and he blinked as a girl, dressed in a ratty yukata, tripped and collapsed to the ground. His eyes opened wide and he ran over. "Are you alright?" He gently turned her over and suddenly sensed someone behind him.

"Hey! You! Back off from her… she's ours…" he heard a voice from behind him and he stood up, turning around.

"What's yours?" Renji stepped forward slightly and slid Zabemaru out of its sheath so the blade caught the blood red sunset.

"That girl behind you… so why don't you just hand her over before we take you down…" another man behind the first said.

"Do you have any idea who I am?" Renji tilted his head slightly, the sharp toothed grin he saved only for the beginning of a fight painted across his face.

"What does she matter to you?" Another said and the lieutenant easily grabbed Zabemaru and slid it out of its sheath.

"She doesn't… I just don't think creeps should be picking on someone that can't defend themselves… when you can deal with me…" he licked his lips.

"This guy's a shinigami… there's no way we can take him…" one of the others whispered. Renji stepped forward and suddenly the men turned tail and ran off, disappearing into the darkness.

He didn't know why he did what he did then. The lieutenant picked up the woman from the ground and jumped off over the buildings. He propelled himself towards the gate, practically flying over rooftops. He skimmed past the gate's guardian and jumped off towards his barrack.

He didn't know why… but for some reason… something told him to take her. It was like a little voice in the back of his head controlled his body and forced his hand. He gently laid her down on the futon on the floor and stared at her. Why did he do this?

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He carefully dressed her open wounds on her arms and the long gash on her hip curving in towards the wiry dark blonde hair between her legs. It had been a long time since he had seen a woman completely naked. But it didn't phase him. He was just worried about not getting caught. He had suppressed his spiritual pressure down as far as it could go and snuck into the squad four barracks, asking Hanataro Yamada for a few supplies. He had acquiesced willingly and had given him everything he needed to dress a few open wounds.

Before hand, much to the red head's chagrin, he was forced to bathe her, scrubbing her body clean of the filth that had covered it. He had found himself looking at something entirely different from the person that he had seen before. Her shoulder length sandy blonde hair contrasted with the caramel tones of her skin. He had yet to see her eyes but he was sure they would be just as out of the ordinary as any other. He gently pulled her hips up, pulling one of his own gi down her body. It hit her mid thigh easily as he pulled his closed over her bandaged body. The long sleeves covered her fingers, hiding the neatly kept nails. He at least knew she tried to take care of herself.

"You are one strange girl…" he whispered under his breath and pulled the blanket of the futon over her and tucking it in around her shoulders. He pulled an extra blanket over himself and tucked himself in.

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"Lieutenant Abarai!" He heard a sharp voice from behind him as he shut the door behind him. He slowly turned his head towards his captain who stood in the hallway. He straightened up and tilted his chin up, his left hand placed on his hilt as was standard.

"Captain…" he nodded his good morning and Byakuya walked over to him.

"Where were you all night last night?" Renji nearly hissed. Byakuya never answered a question unless he already knew the answer, it was an unwritten rule. That meant that Byakuya had learned about his sneaking around.

"I was out, sir…" he looked him in the eye. He could get around lying directly if he was vague.

"Why did you go to the squad four barracks?" He lifted and eyebrow and Renji almost twitched, but that would give him away.

"Because I had an injury…" he almost snorted and Byakuya frowned at him.

"May I see that injury?" Byakuya asked and Renji stuck out his hand. He had prepared for just such an occasion. A bandage was wrapped around a gash in his hand. He had cut it himself as a cover, it had been difficult as Byakuya would have noticed the way the cut was going to he had been forced to be extremely careful and cut it backwards. It had been extremely slow and painful but Renji found that it had worked after Byakuya put his hand down. "Did you run into a little trouble in the eightieth district Abarai?"

"As to be expected sir…" Renji tilted his chin up a little more and Byakuya nodded.

"Very well… go to breakfast…" Byakuya walked off and Renji relaxed, slumping his shoulders slightly with a heavy sigh. "Oh… and Renji…" the lieutenant straightened back up, "next time you cut yourself… don't do it with your own sword…" Renji cursed under his breath as his captain chuckled, walking off.

"Damn it… why does he always have to know everything…" Renji scratched the back of his head and walked off…

Boy what a weird week this was turning out to be…

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Okay… this story was completely random… but I'll keep working on it if you review… I know it's a little different than the ones you guys are used to but… it should end up being pretty good… and if you've read my IchiRukis I'm sure you'll like this one… so please don't just read… read and review… show some love…

Shalan


	2. Blue As The Sky

**Chapter: **Blue As The Sky

**Shalan's Blah: **Uhm… I'm glad… I got some reviews… I guess I got some reviews… I wrote this the same night as chapter one so I have no idea if I have reviews or not… but uhm if there are some… THANK YOU! _Hugs_

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Renji walked into his barrack, a tray held in one hand. He shut the door behind himself and looked down at the futon. There she was, in the same place where he had left her. He squatted down; holding the tray over his head then gently placed the tray down next to her. He sat back on his haunches and waited for her to wake up. When she didn't for a while he stood up and walked over to his window, looking out over the Seireitei. After Aizen's defeat everything had returned to normal for the most part…

He heard a snuffle from behind him and he turned around. She was looking over at the food with curious eyes. She looked up at him and for a moment his rust met the purest sky blue eyes he had ever seen. She scuttled away from him as he leaned out. "What… I'm not going to hurt you…" he reached out to her. Her eyes went to Zabimaru at his hip and he pulled the blade out of its sheath. Her eyes opened wide and she flipped around, scrambling across the floor. "No!" He nearly shouted then took a deep breath. "No… please… calm down… I'm not going to hurt you…" he whispered softly. "See… Zabimaru isn't going to hurt you…" he slowly knelt down and placed the sword on the ground. She watched him as he pulled off the sheath and laid it next to the beautiful sword that now rested on the ground.

She reached out a hand to touch the blade and Renji watched as her fingers touched the cool hard metal of Zabimaru. He almost chuckled as he heard the spirit hiss slightly. "Do you speak?" He asked but her senses seemed enraptured by the cold harsh metal. Her fingers slid along the side of it. "Hello?"

"Celeste," was all she said to him. Her voice was soft, almost inaudible, but it had a beautiful tone to it. After muddling through this single word answer that didn't seem to answer any of his questions he came upon the question to her answer.

"Is that your name?" He blinked and she nodded slowly, her fingers sliding up to the tip of the blade. "Watch…" she let out a gasp as the tip of the sword cut two of her fingers. Crimson blood spilled from the wounds and Renji gently took her hand. She tried to draw away but he was insistent and he pulled her hand again and held his thumb against the cuts. She seemed amazed by his kindness as he gently spread the healing ointment across the cut and bandaged her fingers. "There…" she looked up into his eyes. He stared back for only a moment or two before looking away and looking at the ground.

"Do you have a name?" Again, her voice was quiet, soft like the breeze in the trees but as sweet as honey to his ears. For some reason, as he spoke his own name, he felt that a person like himself shouldn't even be in her presence.

"Renji… Abarai," he barely got out of his mouth. She made him feel like a school boy. She sat there looking at him in the same way that Rukia used to, the smile that could melt butter.

"Hmm…" she said nothing after that but instead motioned to the tray on the floor before her. He nodded, starting to understand what she meant. She made him read her body language to figure out what she wanted instead of saying it, it was a roundabout form of communication but Renji found it rather… entertaining. He had lived his life reading body language, the body language of battle, whether the opponent was ready to strike whether they were ready to parry a blow… yes body language was important to him. Her body language, however, was very different from the body language he was used to.

As he watched her eat he noticed several similarities between her manner of eating and Byakuya's. Which was odd for someone from the Rukongai. She held the bowl of udon in her left hand and lifted the noodles with her chopsticks in her right. When she would lift them out she let them sit for a second before pulling them into her mouth.

"Lieutenant Abarai?" A knock came from the door and he stood up. She seemed startled but he held a hand out to her and stood up.

"Yes," he opened the door and walked out. Before him stood a pretty red head with iridescent ice blue eyes. Her long sleeved uniform was covered by her captain's jacket, which was a little longer than most captains. "Kazumi…" he smiled.

"My heater broke again…" she put her fist to her head. "We're having a hard time fixing it because we're all a bunch of stupid heads…" she was perhaps the most violent and war-loving captain in the bunch and tended to be stronger than even Jushiro when angered but outside the battle field, he had come to find, she was pretty much a hopeless klutz. He sighed lightly.

"What the hell do you do Hasegawa? Beat it up for the hell of it?" He lifted a tattooed eyebrow. She chuckled and shook her head.

"I don't know… I think it's protesting because it thinks its being abused…" she laughed and he shrugged.

"I'll go get Ikakku and we'll be right over… I don't see why you can't just figure out the heater by yourself… aren't you a captain?" He eyed her and she smiled, pressing her hands together.

"Pleaaaase…" she smiled and he frowned, then looked over as Kazumi was suddenly distracted by the opening of his door. "Who's that?" She blinked and Renji shook his head and shut the door. "Renji…" she looked at him.

"No one… just a-a friend of a friend of a friend…" He grinned as the door attempted to open again.

"A pretty friend of a friend…" she folded her arms. Renji looked down. She was getting angry. She didn't seem like it but he knew she was getting mad at him for not telling her what was going on. He gulped, hoping he wouldn't regret telling the busty captain what was going on.

"Fine you can come in… but please don't ask her any questions…" Renji let her in, looking around sheepishly before disappearing into his barrack.

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"Lieutenant Abarai has been acting awfully strange… do you know why?" Byakuya sat across the long table from Kazumi Hasegawa, the ninth division captain that had taken over when Tosen had left. She shook her head and stuffed her mouth full of egg and Byakuya's eye narrowed. His lieutenant had been acting oddly for the past couple of weeks, taking his meals in his bedroom and always avoiding his captain. Byakuya had the feeling that he was avoiding him, for a particular reason.

"Did you ever think about looking in his barrack Kuchiki?" Toshiro asked, looking over at him and Byakuya sighed.

"I had hoped… that he would come clean about whatever he was doing in there…" Byakuya yawned lightly and stood up. It was wintertime in the Soul Society so everything was covered in snow. The captains now wore heavier jackets and the lower level shinigami wore heavier clothes period. Scarves, hats, gloves and cloaks could now be seen all over the Seireitei of all shapes and colors. Byakuya simply wore the heavier version of his hoari as he walked through the mounds of snow. He shuddered lightly as he reached the squad six barracks. It was freezing outside. But what he saw in the snow was something that made him laugh so hard he almost choked.

Renji Abarai, Ikakku Madarame, Shuhei Hisagi and Izuru Kira stood knee deep in the snow… in nothing but their boxers and yukatas and even those were soaked through with icy snow. A young woman wrapped in a heavy black and silver winter kimono**(1)** with a silver obi sash sat on the sidelines watching them with a smile on her face. Byakuya walked off, snorting into his scarf… the other captains had to see this.

When they returned Renji had managed to pin Shuhei to the ground, face rubbed into a pile of the snow. "What are you all doing?" Captain Zaraki asked and all of them froze (no pun intended) and turned to look at him. Their captains stood over them all with mixed expressions. Kazumi had her arms folded, trying hard not to smile. Kenpachi simply lifted an eyebrow so high it looked light it would disappear into his hairline. Byakuya was the most comical of them all for on his face, was what looked like a cross between a smile and a grimace. Izuru's captain had betrayed them and as of yet the position remained empty.

"Snow wrestling sir…" Ikakku straightened up and Renji bit back a laugh as Shuhei dusted himself free of the snow. It was then that they noticed there were two women in the vicinity and everything below their waist was basically exposed… wet boxers were unforgiving.

"Get cleaned up… Abarai I want to see you in my office… with your… friend of a friend…" Byakuya lifted an eyebrow. "Of a friend…"

"Damn…" Renji walked into his barracks as the others ran off. Celeste followed him.

"This is bad?" She asked. She had been speaking more openly with him for the past couple of weeks and it had been rather nice to have someone that wasn't a shinigami to talk to.

"Yes… he'll probably send you back to the Rukongai…" he told her as he made to take off his yukata. She flushed and turned her back to him. He pulled off his wet clothes and quickly hopped into a warm dry hakama and kimono**(2).** She turned to look at him as he tucked in the kimono into his pants.

"That bothers you?" Her sky blue eyes met his rust and he stared at her for a moment. She was right… why did it bother him to see her go? He tilted his head slightly. He had no idea. Maybe it was because he had gone through the trouble of bringing her into the Seireitei… or perhaps… it had something to do with the fact that she was one of the only ones he could talk to about his past. Over the past two weeks, he had come to learn that she had been out in the Rukongai her entire life, which was fairly short as she was still only in her 20's but for some reason it still made him sad. He knew what it had been like out there… and for her to be a woman and living out there… it was a wonder she was alive at all…

"I don't know…" he blinked and averted his eyes. He couldn't look her in the eye for too long, she would make him blush. That was the curse of being a redhead.

"You are a funny person Renji Abarai…" she told him and he pointed at himself.

"Me?" This time he did blush. Funny? Him? He had never considered himself funny. A good fighter perhaps. A loyal friend. But never funny…

"Yes, you make me laugh…" he blinked.

"Now why is that a good thing… I could be making you laugh because I'm just that stupid…" he sighed and she shook her head.

"No… you just have a funny way about you… you're so closed off… I think it's interesting…" she spoke again. He loved to hear her talk. Her voice was soft as butter and smooth as cream, flowing over his mind like a gentle stream.

"Interesting huh?" He shrugged as he strapped Zabimaru to his hip through his sash. "I don't know why you would think that…" he stayed in that position for a short time, simply thinking, his head turned to the side and his eyes on a spot on the floor. Then his sight quickly shifted to look at her out of the corner of his eye. She blinked, he sometimes did things suddenly without warning… and he had the tendency to weave when he stood. She had noticed this from watching his back every morning as he greeted his superior. It was a tiny movement, hardly noticeable to someone that didn't pay attention… he gently shifted his weight from one foot to the other, causing his body to weave slightly, like a snake. She thought it was rather funny and quite an odd habit. She assumed it had something to do with his sword's name.

Zabimaru. Snake tail. She believed that ones' personality could be defined by the things they carried with them. Renji always carried Zabimaru with him, therefore he had the personality of a snake. But something about him seemed different. A snake was only loyal to itself and fought only in defense, Renji however, fought because he was proud and to gain honor and power. These were only things known to man and the creatures related to man. Therefore… she had come to understand that his zanpakūto was something of a nue. Part monkey and part snake.

"You're staring again…" he straightened up and held out his hand to her. "C'mon we better go see what the old grouch wants… if you do have to go back…" he watched her take his hand. He never did finish his sentences…

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**Notes:**

**(1) -** this type of kimono is the traditional style usually thought of when the word is used, a winder kimono is usually a heavy ankle length piece of clothing worn with an obi sash around the waist.

**(2) -** this is the other type of kimono that is the formal wear that goes with the shinigami shihakusho (which is the full uniform) it is usually long sleeved and is worn tucked beneath a hakama (their baggy skirt-like pants) the other is a lighter version worn in summer and spring called a yukata (which is not always female).

Uhm… yeah… I'm thinking that now I'm just writing this story for myself… I really don't think anyone's going to like it… people never do like OC fics… _sigh_… oh well TT.TT I guess I'll just write this one because I want to… if you are reading this… please don't be a jerk and just read it and not review… I'd like to know what you think of it…

Shalan


	3. Shut Me Up

**Chapter: **Shut Me Up

**Shalan's Grimace: **This chapter… was inspired by the song Shut Me Up by Mindless Self Indulgence(imagine that… the chapter is called Shut Me Up OMG). I really… have no idea what the hell I'm going to do with myself… I'm sure part of it… will be based on another song or two… because I ALWAYS listen to music when I write… which is why I always seem to include the lyrics in the chapter if you watch what they say… XDDD anyways… read on!

YAY! I've been made very happy… I have reviews!!! Of course… I'm used to getting them for Somewhere, Apostando and The Best… but for this one? OMG YAY! Thank you guys! I love you so much! And I will continue to post as often as I can… which is usually once a day or so… YAY!

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Renji whipped Zabimaru into the air and it stretched out, he swung it around twisting his body as it slammed into one of the dummies. "That is called effectively using your zanpakūto." Byakuya motioned as Zabimaru linked back together.

"It's called Renji showing off…" one of the students snorted and Renji frowned, folding his arms across his chest. Byakuya walked over to the student.

"I was asked to come and help your teacher today… if you want something in particular then why don't you ask for it?" His thumb slid Sebonzakura out of its sheath a few inches.

"Yeah Keitaro… why don't you ask for what you want…" another student made a rather rude hand motion at the kid who had spoken.

"I got this boss…" Renji stepped out from behind him. "You want to see showing off?" His eyebrow tilted upwards and the kid blinked. "I can show you showing off if you want…" Zabimaru returned to its sealed form and he sheathed the sword. "A hand to hand match… you and me… if you think you're so tough." Byakuya let something resembling a grin flit across his lips. Renji was playing with fire on this one, he couldn't truly defeat the kid or he'd kill him, nor could he lose because then the honor he had worked so hard to gain would be lost.

As Renji pulled his kimono off the icy air stung his tattooed skin. He nearly shuddered but to stop himself he kept moving, throwing the kimono to the side. Keitaro follow suit, tossing his kimono over to the side. Renji let his hands dropped to his side and his eyes flitted over to his captain. Byakuya had been acting so strangely lately… he thought back to what had happened a few weeks before…

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_"Thank you for coming to see me Renji…" Byakuya stood with his back to him as Renji led Celeste in behind him. The pretty blonde stood behind and to the left of Renji, her eyes glued on Byakuya._

_"You asked me to come see you, sir…" he ground out between gritted teeth._

_"So what's your name?" The captain didn't even turn around; he continued to look out the window._

_"Celeste…" she said softly as Byakuya turned his head to look at her over his shoulder._

_"Heavenly…" he nodded his head as his body followed his head, turning to look at her. _

_"Yes… that was what some people used to say…" her eyes averted and she examined his body posture to determine if he was going to hurt them. He didn't look threatening. His spiritual pressure was almost overwhelming, as was his lieutenants, but for some reason the way he carried himself at __this moment… he seemed more like a broken man with a dark past. "How did she die?" Celeste's sky blue eyes met his navy and his eyes narrowed._

_"__Abarai__…" his voice was warning and Renji shrugged, looking over at her._

_"He didn't tell me… I just drew it from the way you are…" she said very plainly as if it were something everyone could do._

_"You have been gifted with the power of observation… you would make a good __shinigami__…" Byakuya folded his arms and Renji blinked. Had his captain just complimented __someone.__ "__Hisana__ was just like you…" then Renji narrowed his eyes. What was bringing up his captain's dead wife?_

_"__Hisana__… was her name then…" her eyes made another scan of him. He held his shoulders back and straight, his head tilted up slightly, showing that he was proud and decided. He seemed to have something of a regal air about him. "You're nobility then…" Renji nodded his head._

_"Why are you here in the __Seireitei__?" Byakuya's eyes never left __Renjii__ who was staring straight ahead._

_"I brought her here sir," Byakuya tilted his head._

_"Is that true?"_

_"__Yessir__… he rescued me from some thugs that were attempting to harm me," Byakuya nodded. _

_"Very well then… you may stay… if you train to become a __shinigami__…" Renji nearly fell over. Byakuya was going easy on him… why? "Now please go wait in Lieutenant __Abarai's__ quarte__rs while I have a word with him," Celeste looked over at Renji and he nodded. She walked out and down the hallway towards his barrack._

_"I'm afraid… that I don't understand you…" Renji eyed him as Byakuya examined a piece of paper on his desk._

_"__You aren't supposed to…" Byakuya sighed then looked up at his lieutenant. "Listen… I… did something very similar to what you have done… so therefore I am not going to condemn you for it… but…"_

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Renji waited until the young boy struck before he stepped to the side and he grabbed the boy's wrist easily flipping him over. Cat calls came from the crowd and Renji chuckled as Keitaro picked himself up.

"What are they doing?" Kazumi stepped up next to General Yamamoto.

"I haven't quite figured that out my dear…" he looked over at the young woman. "How have you been doing? I've heard that you've been frequenting Earth…" her face tinged pink and Yamamoto smiled as again Renji over powered the student again.

"Uhm… yessir…" she looked away. A hand gripped her shoulder and she looked up at Shuhei who stood next to her. "Shuhei…" she smiled and he smiled back.

"Be careful on Earth captain…" Rukia looked over at her. Since the war with Aizen Rukia had been staying in the Soul Society… of course this may be due to the newest addition to the Gotei 13. Shuhei coughed and Kazumi sniggered. "What are you two laughing about?" Rukia looked almost blissfully blank.

"I'm perfectly careful on earth… I am a captain after all…" Kazumi shrugged and yawned.

"Why don't you just bring him up here…" Shuhei asked out loud and Kazumi's cheeks brightened.

"Bring who Hisagi?" She looked over at him and he chuckled nervously. The hot tempered red head was sure to go off if he continued.

"Nobody…" Shuhei shrugged back and she eyed him.

Renji took a blow to the chest then slammed his open palm into the younger's abdomen collapsing him onto the ground. The captains and lieutenants that were watching clapped. Kazumi chuckled as she did and jumped off the railing, much to her lieutenant's dismay. Renji nodded as he walked back to his captain, pulling his kimono back on.

"No bad Abarai… you could have taken him out earlier instead of toying with him…" Byakuya told him and Renji shrugged, rubbing his frozen muscles. "Go take a hot shower and warm up for dinner… you're coming over to have dinner with Rukia and I aren't you?" Renji was too busy rubbing his upper body to realize what his captain had just said, so when he looked up Byakuya sighed.

"What?" He blinked. He had never been invited to come eat dinner at his captain's residence before… especially when Rukia was there.

"Kurosaki's coming with her… you can come too…" he told him and the younger shinigami blinked again. There was no damn way…

"Can…"

"Celeste would be much welcomed… Renji… dress appropriately…" Renji nodded as Byakuya walked off.

"What… changed?" He blinked.

"Something about you reminds him of himself…" Kazumi folded her arms. He had only recently found out that the two of them were cousins. Neither were sure how… but after much speculation on the part of the others they had decided to have Mayuri check and see. The bright red hair linked them; there weren't many people in the Soul Society with red hair.

"How would you know that?" He looked over and Kazumi's eyes met his. Her eyebrows lifted.

"Because I know things about people…" she folded her arms, looking back at Byakuya as he walked off. "Byakuya Kuchiki… is a strange man… but he knows what it's like to be looked down upon. Both our families looked down upon him for marrying outside the nobility… you should know that…" Renji nodded at her words then looked back at his captain.

"Sometimes I wonder if you really are 20 or not…" Renji chuckled.

"Sometimes I wonder if you're over ten…" he punched her shoulder and she laughed.

"Don't harm the captains lieutenant Abarai…" General Yamamoto walked by and Renji nodded.

"I should probably get going… since I'm apparently having Christmas dinner with… the Kuchikis…" Renji still couldn't get over the fact.

"Don't worry… at least you're not having Christmas dinner with a Quincy that thinks you're poisoning the mind of his son…" she shrugged, mentioning what was rumored to be her future father-in-law.

"So you are going to Earth for Christmas dinner…" Renji laughed and Kazumi sighed, Renji could almost see the mushroom cloud of exasperation float from her mouth.

"Yeah… please don't remind me…" she grumbled and walked off.

"I won't… don't worry…" Renji chuckled and turned towards his barracks.

&&&

XDDD I am going nuts with oneshots tonight… Oneshots I have discovered… seem to be my specialty… XDDDDDDD anyways… this should keep getting better… I can't wait for the next chapter…

Shalan


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